The Consequences
by The Cackling Pine Tree
Summary: GOTG2 Spoilers! The Guardians of The Galaxy get called by the Nova Corps immediately after everything happens, and need them to get to Xandar soon. What could possibly have happened? (Sucky Summary lol but I don't want to spoil the plot XD)
1. After

**A/N: Whee~ This will probably be short... maybe only 3/4 chapters... Contains GOTG2 spoilers, somewhat ignoring the end credits scenes for now, but will incorporate them later, possibly. Tell me what you think. This is my first GOTG fanfiction... Also the first fanfiction I've published in three years so, yeah. Rusty. Too bad those half-finished GF fanfiction still need to be worked on...**

 **This is just the beginning, so it seems short. Please tell me what you think... And also if I made any errors. I need to rewatch the first movie again DX.**

* * *

Peter Quill stared blindly out into space as fireworks commemorated Yondu the Ravager, almost alone in the room he brooded in, except for Groot. He felt a stone settle down in the back of his throat as he thought of the reason Yondu had died. It was all his fault. If he hadn't listened to his father, if he'd hightailed it out of there when Gamora had said something was wrong... He tried to swallow, unsuccessfully. "I am Groot?" the little plant-like being asked, tugging at Quill's jeans.

Quill frowned. "I'm fine, obviously," he threw his hands up in the air. "Everything is just perfect. Everybody is dead who needs to be dead," _except me, somehow,_ "and all we need to do now is-" miraculously, his voice hadn't cracked completely when he spoke, but now he was being interrupted by the hologram com system, as a call came through. "What the..." he scowled. Who the hell was interrupting this kind of moment with a stupid call? He almost hit ignore, until he glanced at the caller ID, and gulped, feeling a pit fall down into his stomach. He didn't really fancy hazarding a guess as to why the Nova Corps would be calling... He slowly hit the receive button, and the transmission came through, the hologram popping up and revealing Irani Rael's face, and showing his own to them.

"Guardians, we need you here urgently- Oh my, what happened?" The Nova Prime asked, seeing Quill's deadened face. Quill scowled, his face hardening. There was no need for them to know.

"None of your business, you little shi-," a hand was suddenly clamped down on his mouth, and Quill flailed in surprise as Gamora spoke. _When did she come in?_

"Apologies, he's just lost somebody important to him, I hope you aren't offended. How urgent is this business?" _Since when was Gamora the one who kept her head on..?_ he wondered dazedly. _Oh yeah, wait... Since I lost mine..._ He thought back to when he'd shouted at her to be happy for him since he'd finally found his family, and felt his breath catch in his throat. He mentally cringed in his mind as the choke sounded out through the air, Gamora having removed her hands from his mouth already.

Irani Rael blinked, "Oh... I'm sorry for your loss..."

"No you aren't!" Quill yelled, flinging a useless punch at the hologram, his fist simply going through it. ""You just want me to feel better so I can help you out with your fucking situation!"

She sensed it was a bad idea to pursue that thought at the moment, and switched back to the main reason for calling. "How long will it take you to arrive here?"

Rocket and Drax had just walked in as the question was asked, being led by Groot who had run to fetch them at some point Quill couldn't recall. "Oh, well, we only have several hundred jumps to make before we're there, so... Maybe a couple of days at best?" Rocket jumped up onto the counter which the hologram was showing from.

"Several hundred jumps?!" The Nova Prime sounded shocked. "Where in the universe even are you?"

"In the middle of nowhere," Quill spat out bitterly.

"But we're not in Knowhere, we're by your fa-" Drax blinked in confusion as Quill quickly cut him off.

"Nowhere worth going, at any rate," he amended his statement, glaring at Drax.

"Err... okay, well, please arrive here as soon as possible, we have a situation that has to resolved quickly." she said, glancing at the four of them, and at Quill last.

"I am Groot?" the sapling asked, holding his branchy hand above a screen that was already set to Xandar. Apparently he'd already forgotten about what had happened last time.

"No!" The four all yelled, as the sapling brought his hand down on the screen and their wild ride began.


	2. Xandar

**A/N: Because I somehow got 2 Reviews, 9 Favs and 20 Follows and got inspired to write this faster than I'd planned. Thank you to Beloved Daughter and Guest for reviewing! It made me so happy TTuTT**

 **To Guest: Your review made me so happy, really TTwTT. I'm glad you liked it. Perhaps I will make it longer, I'll see how this plays out, ehehe. Thank you again.**

* * *

Quill had never made so many jumps before in his life. Yondu had been good at that, keeping his crew safe, despite constantly yelling at them. Quill tried to stop thinking of him, and focused on his surroundings instead... Okay wait, maybe that was a bad idea.

There was a giddy feeling inside him as the jumps continued incessantly, as if his stomach wanted to flutter free of its confinements. He couldn't quite name it, though it felt similar to how most jumps felt, only more intense, like the first time he'd jumped when he'd been just a kid... Quill squinted. In fact... Maybe it was somewhat reminiscent of that old rollercoaster ride his grandfather had taken him on once when it was his birthday, almost three decades ago..? He couldn't remember much except for the glee he felt and his grandfather trying not to throw up beside him. He would have laughed at the role reversal now, if he wasn't genuinely afraid of throwing up. He became aware of continuous yelling after a while, and realised it was Rocket. He glanced around at the others, as if he wasn't already dizzy enough. Gamora, her lips pursed tightly shut, was clinging onto the counter, like he was (he absent-mindedly noted that the transmission had cut short as they'd begun the jumps), but Drax stood his ground as if nothing was happening at all. Mantis... Shit, Mantis, where was she?

"D-Drax... Mantis," Quill choked out, before clamping his mouth to prevent his nausea from escaping.

The warrior blinked. "What about her?" he asked over Rocket's screaming.

Quill glared. Did he really need to spell everything out while he was trying not to throw up? "Go. See. If. She's. Okay." he somehow managed to force out.

Drax nodded and turned to leave, promptly falling onto his face as he took a step. Quill couldn't help but let a grunt of exasperation leave his mouth. That was when he noticed things starting to look...weird. Rocket's eyes looked like they were bulging out of his skull in a way Quill had never seen before, and Gamora's face was starting to look odd, too. "Shit!" he yelled as he realised what was happening as the ship did another jump and enhanced the effects, and clamped his mouth shut and wished for the ride to end soon, before they were damaged too badly.

* * *

The ship finally landed in Xandar, Quill trying to land without damaging anything, still terribly dizzy and muddled from all the jumps they'd made. He cussed loudly as he heard a small sound of splashing liquid over by Groot, and saw that the sapling had vomited. "This is all your fault, you know!" he told the sapling irritatedly, though Groot didn't seem to be registering much at all.

"What the..." the ship door had already opened, and Rhomann Dey stood at the door in confusion. "I thought you said you'd only be here in a couple of days." he quickly helped Mantis up, who had fallen to the floor in the passageway.

"Groot decided otherwise, apparently," Gamora said, finally unleashing her hold on the counter and helping Drax up, who had lain on the floor quietly for the rest of the ride.

Quill stumbled over, shaking slightly, anxious to leave the ship. "Yeah," he muttered, as Rocket came over, holding the being responsible for their condition in his hands.

And that was around the time when Quill fell over and knew no more.

* * *

"I am Groot," he heard a small voice say in the darkness.

Peter blinked his eyes open slowly, wondering where he was, gradually taking in his white surroundings, and the fact that he was lying in a bed with -

He suddenly shot up to full alert as he realised there were little things attached to his forehead and chest - like when Ego had used him as a battery. "No! Get off me! I'm not a battery!" he panicked, trying the swipe off the things that were attached to him, suddenly thinking he was back on Ego's planet, unwillingly helping destroy the universe, while Gamora and Drax -

"Shh, hey, it's fine. Everything's okay already, Peter," somebody grabbed his flailing hands and stroked them slowly. Peter blinked and looked up into Gamora's eyes. _Odd... She looks concerned..._ He didn't think that was a normal expression to see on her face.

Mantis looked at Peter curiously from behind Gamora. He shuddered slightly, knowing it could have been her who calmed him while manipulating his emotions, instead of Gamora...

"Huh?" he blinked and finally took in his surroundings properly. He was in a room with holograms flickering on the walls, and sitting in a white bed. There were little wireless things attached to him, presumably connected to the holograms, which were projecting a model of his body and showing his heart rate and - wait, why was it-?

Drax suddenly stood up from where he'd been sitting on the floor, obscuring the hologram from Quill's view. "It appears your fragile Terran body could not take the trip as well as the Mighty Drax could."

This earned Drax a glare from Gamora. "You know they took us all in just to check that there had been no adverse effects. Peter only fainted, anyway. They only kept him in here because of that, and..." she trailed off.

"What? Because of what, Gamora?" Quill demanded, sitting up straight.

Rocket finally decided to interrupt, "It's because of-"

At that moment, Irani Rael walked into the room. "Oh, good, you're up. We have several questions to ask you, Peter Quill. Please come with us." She indicated that the others could come too, as the Nova Prime's assistant quickly took the things off Peter's body and switched off the holograms.

Quill gave the others a confused look as he reluctantly got off the bed and they followed along after Irani Rael into the corridor. He did not like the sound of this one bit.


	3. Reason

**A/N: Thank you guys for everything TTwTT. I now have 5 reviews, 13 Favs, and 35 Follows! I hope you guys enjoy the direction I'm taking this story in OwO**

 **I still need to rewatch the first movie and confirm some trivia. Please tell me if anything I say is off-putting. Thank you to Queenie13, AmaiDango, and Guest for reviewing!**

 **Man this chapter is short. It just flows like that, though... I can see the points where I should cut off chapters... Why are they so short though DX**

 **To Guest: MWAHAHAHAHAHA! Yes, I am evil, I know XD. And my short chapters are evil too XD Why am I so evil? DX Thank you. Tell me if you guessed it right? You probably did but I'm still curious XD**

* * *

They followed the Nova Prime, Quill dragging behind slightly, as she led them into the Nova Corps' Mission Control Centre, where they had been when she'd commended their actions in the Battle of Xandar, and informed Quill that he was only half-Terran. He glanced out the windows, grimacing, as the others chose somewhere to stand in the room, and they all seemed to be focused on the Nova Prime, except him, who was avoiding her gaze.

"Peter," Gamora snapped. "This is important, you idiot."

"Don't care," he grumbled, staring out the window, down into the clean and tidy streets of Xandar. The sinking feeling within him was making him want to run back out of the room and leave Xandar never to return.

He felt a hand touch his shoulder, and move up to cup his forehead from behind. His eyes widened as his heart thumped as he realised who it was, but then he calmed back down again, and turned around, smiling at Mantis. For some reason, it didn't bother him anymore.

"Oh, yeah, so you had something to tell us?" he quipped excitedly, bouncing on his heels impatiently. He could hardly wait to hear what it was!

He was vaguely aware that Gamora had turned to glare at Mantis, but that wasn't very important either.

The Nova Prime looked a little shocked and confused by his sudden change in demeanour, but continued nevertheless, some hologram videos of what had happened popping up as she spoke. "Recently, across every single known planet, there was a great wave of destruction that swallowed up many things." She gestured to the screens where gigantic walls of blue goop suddenly bloomed up and began swallowing up civilisation, the holograms projecting the sound of screams and destruction as people ran away in terror.

The others stared at the holograms in shocked horror, having not seen what had been actually occurring on other planets while they were on Ego, trying to stop the egotistical planet from destroying the universe.

"Aw, so cute!" Peter squealed joyfully, though feeling a bit odd as he said this. The Nova Prime's face morphed into one of anger and horror, and she opened her mouth to say something. That was when Mantis realised her mistake, and quickly placed her hand on Peter's forehead again, letting his negative emotions flow back in.

He blinked and suddenly saw the holograms in a different light, and keeled over, the show of devastation making his stomach try to empty its contents. "Oh...my god..." he gasped after he'd dry-heaved for a while after getting just a little bit out, the liquid dripping down his chin. Peter felt his eyes water as he thought about what could have happened if he hadn't resisted his father, if his father hadn't mentioned his friends or family, or if his father hadn't broken his Walkman... He could remember _feeling_ Ego spread other the other planets, _seeing_ the destruction his father wrought with his help, through the tendrils that had drained him of energy...

"This happened on Xandar, as well. There were two times when its progress halted, and we were able to analyse what it was then." The Nova Prime looked down at Peter as he looked up slowly. "It was something ancient, something we'd never seen here before. Except in you."

Peter felt his heart beat erratically as he scrambled upwards and back, away from the Nova Prime, his eyes widened in horror as he took in the implications of her words. _Oh fuck._


	4. Action

**A/N: Chapter 4 already? Wow, I got excited XD. I still have more coming. Yay, 36 Follows now TTwTT**

 **Mantis... I like her but her powers freak me out a bit. I wouldn't want her to control me like that, even if she's a nice person. XD**

* * *

Peter Quill held his hands up, like a barrier between himself and Irani Rael, "In my defence, I was not responsible for anything that happened because of that," he pointed at the screen of blue goop, then made a face. "Okay, maybe I'm somewhat responsible..." he looked down at the floor, thinking of Yondu. "But I didn't mean for any of this to happen! I didn't want it to happen! He used me against my will!" Peter looked up again, looking the Nova Prime squarely in the eyes, before frowning. _It was kind of my fault... So why am I denying it? Should I just let them capture me and be done with it? Sure, maybe I've done bad stuff before, but something on this scale...deserves punishment, surely..?_

The Nova Prime blinked, and raised an eyebrow. "Did you think we were going to arrest you?" She seemed almost amused.

Quill looked startled, "You're not?"

"I didn't say that," she replied, to which Quill was deeply unimpressed.

"Har har," he scowled.

The Nova Prime continued as if Quill had not said anything at all. "But anyway, yes, that was the reason we called you here, and hearing what you said just now, it does sound like you know what happened. We were hoping that because you are the Guardians of the Galaxy, you would know something and be able to inform us, even without your genetic link to this incident," she nodded to Quill.

Quill stared at her. "You made us come all this way just to tell you something we could have said over a hologram call?" he asked, glancing around at the others. They were all so quiet... Had she filled them in on what was happening while he was unconscious..? He probably _was_ being arrested, at this rate, then.

"Oh, no, that wasn't all. We also wanted to keep an eye on you in a stable, enclosed environment after this incident, and see if your nervous system was affected by these events. We weren't sure if it would set off a chain reaction in you or not." Irani Rael elaborated as she saw Quill open his mouth to protest, "This isn't jail. You will be free to go once we have determined there is no danger that could occur to you, which may take a couple of days to a week for us to determine accurately."

Gamora finally stepped forward and put her hand on his arm, "I think we should do this, just to make sure you're okay." Peter blinked. Gamora was acting a lot more caring than she usually did, and it was weird.

"Seconded," Rocket snorted. "Or else you'll end up killing us all with your driving again."

"Hey, I did not kill anybody!" Peter protested. _Not with my driving, at least..._

"I think it is a good idea to have your weak Terran body checked over, but, Rocket, what race did you run that you came second in, exactly?" Drax addressed Quill first, then turned to Rocket.

Quill groaned, and held his hand up to his forehead as a little voice piped out, "I am Groot!"

"I didn't run a race, it's an expression, big guy!"

Quill tried to ignore Drax and Rocket's conversation (if it could be called one) in the background as he looked at the Nova Prime again. "So, this is just temporary, right? And You just want us to give you some information as well?"

The Nova Prime nodded, and then Mantis decided to pipe up as well, "I also think it a good idea to stay here. I might be able to help, as well, and I know a lot about Ego."

Irani Rael frowned, "Ego..? He actually exists? Was he the cause of all this? Xandar has heard tales...but there are many false legends floating around in the universe."

Quill sighed and looked around. "Okay, we'll tell you what happened. But first... Is there anywhere to sit down?" he asked. He had a feeling it might take a while to explain everything, especially if she found his short version of events unsatisfactory.


	5. What?

**A/N: Woah, 11 Reviews, 21 Favs and 53 Follows? I'm so happy you guys like my story so much TTwTT. Welp, looks like this story is gonna be a bit longer than I thought, but it's better to underestimate than overestimate on things like this, right..? Also, I thought I would have longer chapters so lol XD.**

 **PS: You guys are gonna kill me when I post the next chapter XD**

 **Consider yourself warned. XD**

 **Thank you to Amani Dango, Snowflake, Daladya, and Beloved Daughter for reviewing OwO**

 **To Snowflake: Indeed, mwahahahahahaha! XD**

* * *

So it turned out Quill's short version of events wasn't satisfactory for the Nova Prime. Because apparently the explanation "I have a crazy planet as a father who wanted to take over the whole universe so I ended up committing patricide to stop him," wasn't very helpful, though her eyes had widened in shock as she asked them for more detail.

Drax had been extremely unhelpful, almost telling the Nova Prime that they'd stolen batteries from the Sovereign after she'd asked them how they'd met Ego, but Gamora had butted in, saying the bare minimum- that their ship needed repairs so they'd landed, and that was when Ego had passed by and introduced himself. Groot had tried to interject some facts a couple of times, but the Nova Prime and her assistant had struggled to understand his limited vocabulary, and it wasn't as if they were very important facts either.

Quill explained about agreeing to go to Ego's planet with Gamora and Drax, and Mantis said how before she'd met them, she'd only really been in the company of Ego before, and a couple of his children, once or twice, but they'd never stay around for long.

"I thought something seemed off, though, about the whole thing, especially when Mantis wanted to tell Drax something, but didn't," Gamora looked over at Mantis. "And then my sister came along and we found a cave with many skeletons lying around. That was when I knew something was wrong."

"Wait, what?!" Quill stared at Gamora. He knew Ego had had many children... What he hadn't know was that they'd never left...

Gamora looked startled at first, but then realisation dawned upon her. "Oh, yes, I never got to tell you... When we got to you, there was no time to explain."

Quill shuddered and shifted in his seat. "Oh, yeah..." He knew what part had to be explained next. "I, err, got used like a battery..." Peter swallowed. "Because apparently Ego needed the power of two Celestials to pull his plan off..? Or at least more than one... And I wasn't exactly compliant..." He didn't need to explain what he'd almost done. His friends had only arrived after he'd started fighting back, anyway. No need to explain how the idea had seemed beautiful at first, yeah. That he'd only snapped out of it when he thought about his mother and his friends.

"And then we arrived and smashed that fucker into the ground with our ship!" Rocket smashed his small fists together gleefully, as if it had been his pleasure.

"I am Groot!" the sapling piped up protestingly.

"Yeah, I know it didn't work, shut up, I'm getting there," Rocket waved Groot off.

"We basically just had to get a bomb to go off in Ego's core to destroy him," Quill interjected, pressing his hand to his forehead tiredly. He didn't want to explain anymore.

"We were all in the ship by the time Ego was destroyed, except for Quill, and Yondu..." Gamora trailed off.

There was a silence that occupied the room.

"And then Yondu died saving me, the stupid fucker," Quill said numbly.

The Nova Prime processed this information slowly. _Yondu the Ravager._ Rocket had explained that he'd accompanied them to go save Quill, earlier.

Quill pushed his chair out and stood up. "Okay, that's all we have to tell you. We'll be leaving now." He turned and started towards the door.

"Peter! You know we can't leave yet," Gamora said sternly.

"Yes, your fragile Terran body is extremely capable of breaking," Drax added in.

"Puh-lease, I'm fine!" Peter waved his hand at them. "Also, will you please stop calling me 'weak' and 'Terran'? I'm pretty sure we all know what I am and what I'm not, already." He blinked as he heard their gasps. "Huh, what?"

They were staring at the hand he'd waved at them. He looked down at it and screamed.


	6. Denial

**A/N: TROLOLOLOL I'M EVIL XD**

 **I told you that you would kill me XD**

 **But yeah. After five chapters, I'm finally getting to what I wanted to get to? XD**

 **Also, I didn't realize my story got added to a community? I'm so happy TTwTT**

 **I have 19 Reviews, 23 Favs and 58 Follows, now, as well? -squeals happily- You guys just make me want to write even more OwO**

 **Thank you to LuckyKittens, Guest No.1, GiGitheHedgehog, Queenie13, Guest No.2, Beloved Daughter, and NexIncendius for reviewing.**

 **To Guest No.1 : Sorry about that, I actually have trouble not ending chapters in cliffhangers XD**

 **I should work on that, perhaps... it's so hard to find a middle ground lol. And thank you OwO**

 **To Guest No.2 : I'm glad you like it OwO**

* * *

His hand was completely _normal_. Nothing _weird_ happening to it _whatsoever_. No sirree. Peter couldn't help burst into laughter after he'd screamed, though to the others it seemed more like hysterics. "Oh my god, you guys are hilarious," his eyes watered. "Why did you guys scare me like that?"

They still looked shellshocked, until the Nova Prime snapped back into reality. "Peter Quill," she addressed him, standing up. "Are you aware of what being half-Celestial entails?"

Peter blinked at her. "No way. I'm just Terran," he protested. "Ego said that I would be when he died." _Nothing had happened to his hand. Nothing at all._

"Did it occur to you that he was just saying that so that you wouldn't kill him?" Gamora snapped, also standing up. _He'd just been imagining it, yeah._

"Yeah, it's not like you stopped being Terran when your mother died," Rocket pointed out, and Quill felt like he'd been dealt a blow by Ronan's warhammer.

"That's not - don't bring my mother into this!" Quill shouted angrily. "The only thing that concerns her is that she was unlucky enough to fall in love with such a bastard!"

"I am Groot!" the sapling interjected.

"Groot is right, there is no way to tell whether your father was telling the truth or not." Drax supported the others.

"And we do not have enough information on Celestials to discern whether what this Ego said is true or not," the Nova Prime added.

"You know what, the lot of you can just fuck off!" Quill shouted angrily. "I'm a fucking Terran and that's that!" He stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind him with a bang as he stalked off through the building. _They're all wrong._

Drax stared after him. "Do you think he will ever accept it?"

Rocket shrugged, "Who knows? With him it's like trying to break a rock with your forehead."

"I am Groot," Groot politely reminded Rocket that the same applied to him.

"You can just - shut your sap hole, you're not helping here!" Rocket growled.

Gamora looked to Mantis, who shuffled her feet a little. "Those sparks... That was definitely..." she trailed off, her antenna dropping slightly.

The Nova Prime sighed. "After hearing what you've just told us, I fear what might happen if he doesn't accept himself... If only we had more information about half-Celestials... We didn't even know they could exist," she admitted.

"We should go after him," Gamora decided.

"Before he kills himself like the idiot he is," Rocket added.

"It shouldn't be that hard, considering he is half-Terran," Drax pointed out.

"Oh geez, are you still hung up over that?" Rocket asked, exasperated.

"What? It's true," Drax blinked.

"I give up on the both of you," Gamora scowled and headed off to find Quill.

* * *

Quill stalked off through the corridors angrily, unsure exactly where he was headed. It wasn't possible, Ego was dead. He couldn't _possibly_ still be half-Celestial. Ego himself had said it. _No_. He _couldn't_ be. It wasn't possible. Quill growled and clenched his fists together. He wasn't anything like Ego, he couldn't be.

Quill rounded a couple of corners without meeting anybody, but then his luck ran out and he came face-to-face with Rhomann Dey. The man frowned, "What are you doing out here all by yourself, Star-Lord?" Peter winced at the name, a painful reminder of his mother, and now, his biological father as well.

"Don't _call_ me that!" he snapped. "My name's Peter Quill and that's all I'll ever be!" The other man looked startled. He could still remember when Quill told him it was Star _-Lord_ , not Star _-Prince_. "Can I leave now?" Quill made to pass the man, but his arm was taken hold of firmly.

"I'm afraid not," the Nova Corps Denarian shook his head. "We have orders not to let you leave, at least for now."

"Oh. Well, that's nice to know," Peter said brightly, before punching the man hard in the face and making a run for it, the temporarily dazed man involuntarily letting go of him.


	7. Well, That Didn't Work Out

**A/N: Long ass A/N. That's what happens when I don't update for a week OTL. After I wrote the last chapter, I felt so content that I didn't write for hours and just wanted to sleep...**

 **Sorry about not updating for a bit, I hit some rocky ground but I should be fine. Just wasn't really expecting to be dragged down by emotional numbness yet again XD**

 **This is probably the time that having a friend like Mantis would be super helpful, I guess XD. Even if it's creepy... I guess I'd rather be manipulated to feel something than stare at the wall feeling empty and that nothing has any purpose anymore... Anyway, I digress. XD**

 **Thank you for the 27 Reviews, 37 Favs, and 97 Follows! They help me feel more alive again OwO**

 **Thank you to Snowflake, Beloved Daughter, Queenie13, Ayla, BlackFireWolf 5, Iheart2manyfandoms, Guest, and Teeb for reviewing TTwTT**

 **To Snowflake: Your review made me laugh so much, thank you for brightening my day. That was hilarious XD**

 **To Ayla: I'm really glad you like it, and yeah, I'll try to update soon when I can OwO**

 **To Guest: Thank you, your review made me feel better than I've been feeling the past couple of days, I appreciate it.**

 **To Teeb: Thank you for your review, I'll try to go back and work on things. Thank you for pointing out what needs fixing, I appreciate it a lot. I hope I'll be able to make things better OwO. I dunno if I'll be able to up the standard on this chapter, though, I feel kind of guilty for not having updated for a bit ^^;**

 **I tried... But I don't think I did it properly this time... I need to expand on it more. Or maybe it feels too superficial. Idk OTL. I hope you come back and leave another review so I can try to improve more OwO**

 **I'm going to be going back to previous chapters when I can to hopefully expand on their contents soon, I'll tell you guys once I have XD**

 **PS. I passed out last night when I was trying to post this? XnX. Welp. Lol. Better late than never I guess. But I'd prefer to stick to on-time lol. At least I managed to catch up on sleep, three hours a night was getting to me OTL. Stupid brain. XD**

* * *

Peter hadn't gotten far when Rhomann Dey gave chase, only several large running strides. "Hey!" the man called after him, making Peter put on a small burst of speed, and trying to turn a corner fast, his side brushing against the wall briefly as his momentum carried his torso in the direction he had been going in. Quill raced onwards, under close pursuit by the Nova Corps Denarian, not really aware of his surroundings as he ran, his footsteps thumping loudly on the not-so-recently polished floor. He hadn't really been aware of his surroundings when he'd began running, having been in too much of a panic, which was why when he turned another corner, he ended up crashing into Gamora and falling onto the floor on top of her, his nose just inches away from her own. _Shit_ , he realised too late that he'd taken off in the wrong direction.

"I told you it would be easy for him to hurt himself," Drax pointed out, walking up from behind Gamora, accompanied by Rocket, Mantis and the Nova Prime. He would have sounded smug, if it wasn't for the fact that it was _Drax_ speaking, of all people, and not some genetically-modified raccoon with an unfriendly disposition.

Quill would have usually made some smart quip or flirty line as he stared in Gamora's enticing eyes, if he'd ended up on top of Gamora in 'normal' circumstances, but this was a far call from 'normal'. Or whatever 'normal' was for the Guardians, at least. He jumped up quickly, turning around, only to find Rhomann Dey standing behind him, blocking his escape path. Escape was seemingly impossible now, especially with Gamora right there as well, as Peter twisted around again to find another escape route, finding that Gamora was standing up already, looking like she was prepared to knock him out if he dared even _try_ to flee once again. Quill felt his body take these facts into account, and he sagged forwards, feeling like all the energy had been drained from him, as his heart gradually slowed down from its hummingbird-like state. He collapsed onto his knees, staring down at his stretched-out hands. "Why?" he croaked out softly. "There's nothing wrong with me... I'm just Terran." He lifted his head up and looked into Gamora's eyes, and stated more firmly, "I'm a fucking Terran, yo. Ain't nothing gonna change that." _Even if his father was Ego._ He took a deep breath and stood up shakily. _Why should_ _ **anything**_ _change that?_ he wondered, his resolve hardening. He was _proud_ of being Terran, dammit, and he wasn't about to let anybody tell him otherwise.

"Quill..." Gamora started, but never finished, her eyes absent of the harsh coldness they usually held. _Why the fuck is she acting like this? Nothing's wrong with me... I don't understand_ , Peter grimaced. _She's prepared to knock me out one moment, but treating me like a baby Groot the next..? What even..._

"Are you hearing this idiot? Seriously?" Rocket snorted sarcastically, and Gamora glared at him as if to say ' _I will slit your throat because you are._ _**Not.**_ _**Helping**_ '. Ahh... There was Gamora's famed eyes of steel. Peter wondered why she was making an effort not to skewer _him_ with that gaze for once. It wasn't as if looks could kill, after all. Unless Gamora just happened to have some weird power she'd never told him about. He briefly pondered what the likelihood of that could be as he watched Rocket snort and not keel over like roadkill. Hmm. There could be a possibility it only worked on Terrans.

Irani Rael spoke, not unkindly, though her strong voice still carried an air of authority, "Peter Quill, I assure you, this is all for your own safet-"

"What if I don't want to be saved?! It's all my fault Yondu's dead! Maybe I'm the one who should have died instead of him, along with my bastard of a father! God knows I'd have deserved it!" Peter spat out furiously, unable to take it anymore. There was suddenly a shocked silence as the other Guardians stared at him, and Quill's ears finally processed what he'd just said. _Oh wait, fuck. I did not mean to say that..._ He flinched back from them, wishing he could take back the vocalisation of his thoughts. "I mean..." he trailed off, trying to think of words he could use to write off his outburst.

The other Guardians looked at each other, wondering how the people around them had taken the statement Quill had just proclaimed. Drax had barely blinked, his emotions guarded by the rock-like visage he often wore. Rocket seemed startled, and angry, his furry eyebrows furrowing together, and his lips curled up, revealing his sharp teeth, though there was another emotion hidden in there too that Peter couldn't quite place. Groot looked like a plant, with big round eyes and an open mouth, as usual. Could beings with bark and wood for skin and flesh even make a variety of facial expressions? Quill had no idea. Irani Rael's upturned eyebrows and sorrowful gaze conveyed something akin to pity, which Quill didn't quite care for. Mantis looked shocked, and despairing, her large glittering eyes taking up most of her face, and she took a step forward as if to place her hand on Quill's shoulder. Gamora was... Peter had no words to describe it, and he tore his gaze away from her quickly, before he broke completely.

The way they were looking at him, with pity, it only brought back bad memories, and magnified the hollowness inside him that had been there since they'd won the battle with Ego and survived, unlike some others... He was finding it hard to keep everything down, especially after seeing Gamora's face.

"...I am Groot," the sapling voiced hesitantly, and Peter looked at him, finally being able to recognize the emotions the little sapling was experiencing, by his tone of voice and the words spoken.

Quill sighed. He just felt so tired of everything... Couldn't this conversation hold off until later..? "Why the fuck does everybody look like they're pitying me? Stop it or I'll seriously consider shooting somebody." Too bad his weapons were nowhere to be found on his body since he'd woken up, he suddenly realised as he patted himself down, feeling for them. They must have taken important things away when he'd been unconscious. He huffed, and crossed his arms over his chest instead. "Well... If I'm not allowed to leave, can somebody please tell me where I can go, then?" He frowned, his eyes daring anybody to take up the topic he'd purposely diverted away from if they wished to fight him.

The Nova Prime blinked and drew herself up again. "Ah, indeed, you will be in the room you were in earlier, and you may leave it and go to other rooms in this building only if you are accompanied by somebody who is capable of stopping you from hurting yourself," she glanced at Groot's small form here, and Quill snorted.

"What, so I'm under 'house-arrest' or something?" Quill protested angrily, following the Nova Prime along as she decided to walk ahead.

"No, it's more like being in a hospital," she corrected, and Peter glanced behind him as he heard more footsteps and saw the others following too.

"So, what do you want me to do all this time? Lie in bed like I'm comatose?"

She drew to a sudden stop in front of a door, and Quill stumbled, trying not to run into her. "Preferably, just don't get into any mischief. Though I understand that may be hard for you," she glanced at them, and Quill felt a stone drop in his stomach. So she knew about the kind of bad things they'd done after saving Xandar, even if they'd done good things as well? He'd have to probe her at a later stage to see just how much she knew about their exploits.

She opens the door, and walked in, clearly expecting Quill to follow. He halted in the doorway, recognising the room he'd woken up in. "N-no. I don't..." he stumbled backwards, running into Drax, who gently pushed him into the room.

"When he woke up, he thought he was being used as a battery...again," Gamora explained Quill's behavior, an odd melancholic tone carrying in her voice.

Irani Rael blinked as she held up the little things that had been attached to him earlier, and Quill felt a spike of fear run down his spine, taking a step back. "These. You don't like them?" she questioned curiously, seeing Quill's fearful face. He shook his head to the side frantically in response.

"Hmm... Well, I suppose I can get them to use the analyzing rays instead..." she trailed off, pondering. "I'll be back soon. For now, is it fine if you wear them? We need some way to keep an eye on what your body is doing. I'd hate for something adverse to happen to you while we couldn't tell."

Peter bit his lip, clenching his fists. She actually _wanted_ him to... Did she seriously believe he'd agree..? He looked down at the floor. But at the same time... It wasn't really using him like a battery, only analysing his insides... And she was trying to help, he guessed, though it was unhelpful as he knew there was nothing wrong with him... There was no harm in letting her see, he supposed. After all, he was only Terran. No harm in letting her satiate her curiosity masked as concern, if that's what it was. Though it would be terribly boring. But maybe having some downtime for once would be nice. His mouth twitched, "Fine." Hah. He'd laugh in her face once they'd confirmed he was only Terran. It would serve her right, anyway. Anything to confirm that they were wrong about him. Though as he agreed, he felt a tiny niggling feeling in the back of his mind, a fear that maybe they weren't wrong... He grimaced and pushed that thought away. There was no way, Ego had said it himself. Quill looked at Irani Rael and waited for the dreaded things to be attached once more.


End file.
